‘You had us fooled good and proper,’ said Harvey.
‘My intentions were all good, I swear. With Melissa back in Heritage Cove the thought of not having the ball and not dancing with her became unbearable.’ Eyes glistening, he looked her way. ‘After we lost Harry I wasn’t lucky enough to become a father again, but having the both of you in my life stopped me getting washed away with my grief in the moments when I could’ve easily let it happen. You two gave me a reason to carry on.’ He looked at each of them.
Now he focused on Melissa. ‘I hadn’t told a soul about Lois and me, or about Harry, but one day I told your mum.’
‘Mum knew?’ Melissa gasped.
‘I think it’s why she sent you round here so often, she knew the pain I was in. She never breathed a word and for that I was grateful. I never talked about it with her again, I didn’t want to, you were the therapy I needed. The both of you.’
‘Even when you were angry at us?’ Harvey asked.
‘I was never angry.’
‘I beg to differ. Remember that stinking-hot summer when Melissa and I had a water fight using your garden hose?’
Barney’s laughter had him clutching his side. ‘They were so naughty,’ he told Lois. ‘There was a hosepipe ban that year and I came back to find them soaking one another and the entire courtyard. Lord knows how many litres of water they wasted.’
‘You know what,’ said Harvey, ‘you saved me too. You were a father figure in my life when I needed it the most, so I guess I can forgive you for your little games now.’
Barney looked too emotional to talk, he just nodded. Lois dabbed her eyes discreetly with a tissue. Nobody said anything for a moment, Barney looked scared they’d throttle him, and it was Melissa who finally broke the silence.
‘You’re a kind man, Barney. Thank you for being you, even though you played us good and proper.’
‘I’d never make you stay after all of this,’ Barney told her, ‘not unless you wanted to be here. I let you go once when you needed to, because I’d done the same thing.’ Clasping Lois’s hand, he told them, ‘I moved away from Leafbourne, came to a village where nobody knew me, to lick my wounds if you like. On the anniversary of Harry’s death I walked past White Clover and it was a sign. I know that kind of thing sounds ridiculous, but I stood there staring at the building, asking myself, why today? And I found myself going in. It wasn’t Ashley running it all then, of course, it was another woman, Lesley I think her name was. But we talked for hours, it was almost a kind of counselling. I ended up helping out with odd jobs around the premises and while I was there I soon got to realise that Lois and I weren’t the only ones to go through the horrific pain of losing a child.’ His voice caught for a moment. ‘It was then that something clicked. I wanted to do something, I wanted to move forwards in whatever way I could. I’d done a terrible job of doing so up until then. A couple of weeks later I saw a feature on the evening news about a family who ran a wedding dress ball every year to raise money for some charity or other. I took one look over at my barn and thought, I can do that. I imagined a band, people dancing, guests chatting away, the company, the social life I’d shied away from. It was all there for the taking.’
‘And you made it happen,’ said Harvey. ‘Without anybody ever knowing why.’
‘They didn’t need to know,’ said Barney. Throughout his recount he and Lois had never let go of each other’s hand.
Melissa shuffled the dress a little as the weighty material became harder to hold on to. ‘I’m glad you confessed, Barney, but right now, can we put any more tales of your antics on hold and get on with pinning this dress? I’m well aware that I’m standing here half naked.’
Harvey was well aware too.
Lois did the honours and finished pinning the section she needed to. ‘There, I think we’re done. Let’s get the dress off and I’ll set to work.’
‘Are you sure you don’t mind?’ Melissa asked.
‘It won’t take me long. I’m a whizz with a sewing machine, and Harvey, if your mum wouldn’t mind helping me out I’d really appreciate it.’
‘Of course, how does tomorrow sound?’
‘Tomorrow sounds perfect.’
Lois seemed on the surface to have slotted in with the man she hadn’t seen for such a long time. They referred to the years they’d been together, not dwelling on the painful times. But when he’d glanced at her on occasion he’d detected a vulnerability, most likely the same feeling that had made her run in the first place.
Now, with Melissa in the bedroom and Lois helping her, Harvey told Barney, ‘I could get very angry, you know.’
‘I know, son.’
Barney knew how to get him in his weak spot, addressing him that way. ‘But I won’t.’ He sat down, arms outstretched along his thighs. ‘Melissa is at least here and we’re talking.’
They shared a brief look before Melissa rejoined them. ‘You’re both so kind to let me wear the dress,’ she told Barney and Lois, who followed behind her with the garment and laid it on the table next to the sewing machine. Barney had already fussed over the table and made sure there wasn’t a single crumb from lunch, or drop from a drink.
‘I’m looking forward to seeing you in it for the ball,’ said Barney. ‘Now, would you two mind if Lois and I had some alone time? You don’t need to worry about me now you know I’m doing just fine and I have company.’
‘Right.’ Harvey picked up his keys and, in his other hand, the brochure for Aubrey House. ‘I’ll throw this away, shall I?’
Lois covered her mouth to stifle a giggle.
